Clyde Edwards-Helaire Out Chiefs' 1st 4 Games After Being Placed on NFL Reserve List

Kansas City Chiefs running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire will miss at least four games to start the 2024 regular season after being placed on the Reserve/Non-Football Illness list, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

According to Matt Derrick of Chiefs Digest, the organization plans to keep Edwards-Helaire on the payroll even though it is not required when on the NFI list. The Chiefs will also "continue providing him assistance in his treatment."

The veteran running back revealed in August that he has been dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder, with physical symptoms vomiting.

"Sometimes I'm admitted into the hospital, something like I can't stop throwing up," he said. "The only person who kind of put me in the right direction was [Chiefs assistant athletic trainer] Julie Frymyer."

Edwards-Helaire didn't go into the specific circumstances that led to his PTSD, but did say gun violence cost some of his friends their lives and that he dealt with a "self-defense situation" back in 2018.

"Everybody goes through things," he noted. "Good, bad, just being able to cope with it, just being human. At 25 years old I'm just trying to live the rest of my life healthy."

Edwards-Helaire appeared in 15 games for the Chiefs last season, registering 223 rushing yards and a touchdown while adding 17 catches for 188 yards and a score. After being a first-round pick in the 2020 NFL draft and rushing for over 800 yards as a rookie, he's fallen down the depth chart as Isiah Pacheco has emerged as the clear starter.

The Chiefs currently have Pacheco, Samaje Perine and Carson Steele at the position. Perine was signed later in the summer after being released by the Denver Broncos and is expected to serve as the team's top receiving option out of the backfield when it opens the 2024 season on Thursday against the Baltimore Ravens.

"The opportunity to have a guy in here that can do the run game and the pass game, I just think he's a good, well-rounded football player that's extremely intelligent, that is a great addition that (general manager) Brett (Veach) added to the team," head coach Andy Reid told reporters on Friday regarding Perine.